Wearable technology seems to be the hottest tech trend of now. Gadgets companies such as fitbit, Apple, Garmin, Google and Samsung seem to be taking technology to such great heights.

Here are the top 5 hottest trends in wearable tech.

Snap Inc debuted their amazing smart glasses technology only a year ago, and it would seem like they never got anywhere. The glasses themselves, known as the Snap Spectacles became the hottest item of the summer upon release, but failed to take off due to a variety of reasons. Though they may have had a camera in them

What specifically makes smart glasses so exciting is not the prospect of them having a camera (though that is pretty cool), but the other possibilities for features you may not have even thought of. Tzukuri is an Australian company specialising in “unlosable glasses”. The glasses have a tiny GPS tracker and solar panel, giving them both power and connection to a GPS signal at all times.

Even though this seemed like science fiction not even a few years ago, Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) has somehow ventured to the forefront of consumer technologies. With Samsung’s Gear, Google’s Daydream, Microsoft’s VR headset all entering the fray, the onus is now on software developers to be able to catch up. It’s going to be a crazy world when we can go on virtual reality tours of different locations, or even play games in 3D space.

These technologies are not available to the extent that we first envisioned, but all the signs are there. In the distant future, we may see the creation of complete gaming worlds in the VR space. This would not only allow for immersive reality experiences, but for gamers to be able to get up and move around. The possibilities are endless.

Smart bands have created a whole new market for themselves. Fitbit, the company that really pioneered the smart band has introduced every feature under the sun, from fitness and actitivity tracking, heart rate monitoring, providing exercise routines, even being able to provide users with an accurate measure of their VO2 Max output, a vital part of their breathing process. Smart bands have taken on a life of their own outside of the smartwatch market.

The smart sports wearable is an emerging trend of 2017. The most prominent example of this is the Forcite snow helmet, an Australian invention from Forcite Helmet Solutions. The ingenious helmet debuted on kickstarter earlier this year and I couldn’t be more excited about the prospect. Not only does it let you live stream your ski run, but it also allows you to map out your run to present the optimal snow run. The same technological concept is being applied to motorbike helmets, which are due in the next few years.

With Christmas just around the corner, there’s never been a better time to start researching wearables. You never know what you might find for a present!